Partial support is requested for the funding of the 2003 FASEB Smooth Muscle Conference to be held from July 05-10th at Snowmass, Colorado. This conference is the 8th in a highly successful series of smooth muscle meetings that have been held every 3 years since 1982. The FASEB Smooth Muscle Conferences are widely regarded as the premier forum in the field of smooth muscle biology. The meetings have been extremely popular and attended by leading investigators from Australia, Asia, Europe and North America. An understanding of smooth muscle function is vital to those interested in cardiovascular, respiratory, reproductive, digestive and urinary tract physiology and pathophysiology. Thus, this conference regularly attracts both basic science and clinical investigators from several disciplines. Rapid progress has been made during the past 3 years using techniques such as molecular biology, cellular and sub-cellular confocal imaging, and patch clamping, and new insights have been gained about myofilament interactions, development and plasticity of smooth muscles, ion channel identity and regulation, second messenger systems, Ca2+ signaling, and cell-to-cell interactions. Because many smooth muscle investigators work on specific organ systems (i.e. cardiovascular system) and frequently attend society meetings related to the specifics of these organ systems, a comprehensive smooth muscle meeting where common issues related to the cell and tissue biology of smooth muscles are discussed is extremely important. The FASEB Smooth Muscle Conferences have served this critical need for over 2 decades. The format of the meeting is especially conducive to informal discussion and opportunities to form new collaborations. In addition to the programmed lectures described in the application and organized into 9 topical symposia, contributions from young investigators will be selected from the abstracts submitted and added to the symposia as oral presentations. The 2003 FASEB Smooth Muscle Conference will provide a comprehensive review of recent progress in smooth muscle biology and constitute an intensive short course for scientists who are beginning investigations in the field or clinical investigators with broader clinical interests in smooth muscle function. The extensive opportunities for informal interactions will allow investigators at all levels to meet new colleagues, explore new ideas and techniques, and develop new collaborations.